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If Orleans County’s legislative delegation had its way, Scott Milne would be Vermont’s next governor.

That’s not a surprising decision for the Republicans who represent the county, but as of this week only one of the three Democrats was willing to unequivocally say that he’ll follow tradition and support the candidate who won the popular vote.

Representative Sam Young of Glover said he will vote for Governor Shumlin.

“I think it’s generally a bad precedent if the Legislature starts electing people who didn’t win,” Mr. Young said.

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Rod Barrup stands in the yard of his company, Green Mountain Mulch. He said his problems with the state Department of Taxes sometimes make him want to shut down his operation. He doesn’t, he added, because of his workers, who stuck by him when he lost everything in a fire and got the business back in operation in short order. Photo by Joseph Gresser

copyright the Chronicle October 15, 2014

by Joseph Gresser

DERBY — Rod Barrup is not happy with the government of what he calls “the first communist state in the U.S.” In particular he is angry about a $400,000 bill from the Vermont Department of Taxes.

Mr. Barrup’s business, Green Mountain Mulch, has been operating for close to 40 years and ships five million bags of bark mulch and another 3,000 trailers full every year.

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Judy Bevans, former chairman of the Vermont Democratic Party, looks on while Representative Sam Young of Glover reads a resolution honoring Francis Whitcomb of Albany. Photo by Donald Houghton

copyright the Chronicle September 10, 2014

by David Dudley

ALBANY — At 91 years of age, Francis Whitcomb has held any number of titles, formal and otherwise: Lister, moderator, planning commissioner, justice of the peace, chairman of the Orleans County Democratic Committee, teacher, principal, farmer, sugarmaker, singer, advisor, father, and husband, among many others.

Mr. Whitcomb tried to add state Representative to that list, but the title eluded him through seven campaigns.

Sitting at the head of the kitchen table in his old farmhouse in Albany Monday, Mr. Whitcomb had the air of a preacher. He’s tall and was dressed simply, as though he were going to spend the day in the garden, in the sugarhouse, or engaged in one of his favorite pastimes, walking.

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WESTFIELD — Since property tax bills here went out recently, town officials have heard a lot of griping — and confusion. Why did the residential property tax rate go up 24 percent when the Jay-Westfield School budget went up by about 5 percent?

“We’ve had a lot of people not happy, and I’m in that category,” said Westfield Town Clerk LaDonna Dunn. “This year in Westfield we got hit pretty hard.”

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The Shadow Lake Association has petitioned the state, asking that a roughly one-acre section of Danforth Cove at the north end of Shadow Lake be temporarily closed to human use in order to control milfoil. The area is already marked by orange buoys and is not supposed to be used for fishing, boating, or swimming. Photo by Tena Starr

copyright the Chronicle September 3, 2014

by Tena Starr

GLOVER — Members of the Shadow Lake Association have petitioned the state, asking that a roughly one-acre section of the lake be closed to human use in order to control milfoil. It would be only the second time in Vermont that part of a lake has been closed to public use because of milfoil.

The last time the rule was exercised was in 1998 when part of Lake Morey was closed due to a milfoil infestation, said Matthew Probasco, aquatic nuisance control and pesticide general permit coordinator at the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC).

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Wheat at Butterworks Farm in Westfield is grown organically, with no genetic modifications. Photo by Bethany M. Dunbar

copyright the Chronicle May 21, 2014

by Bethany M. Dunbar

Orleans County farmers and consumers won’t be immediately affected by Vermont’s first-in-the-nation passage of legislation requiring labeling of foods with genetically modified ingredients.

The legislation allows two years for the rulemaking process, and potential challenges are brewing in the courts and in Congress in the meantime.

“I’m really proud of Vermont as a state,” said Jack Lazor of Butterworks Farm in Westfield, a leader in the organic farming movement. He said he has always thought those who like genetically modified organisms (GMOs) ought to be happy to include them on their labels.

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David Mealiea and Anna Dirkse, both of Burlington, were two of four singing pickets who stood outside the State House last Thursday in support of raising the minimum wage. “We fight for human rights so all can be free,” they sang. Photo by Paul Lefebvre

copyright the Chronicle March 26, 2014

by Paul Lefebvre

MONTPELIER — Regional and local planners are expected to be the big losers in a bill to open up the siting process for ridgeline industrial wind projects.

Scheduled to appear on the Senate floor, the bill was rerouted to the Senate Committee on Appropriations Tuesday as negotiations continued behind the scenes to strike a compromise and keep it alive.

“Unfortunately, regional planning is one of those things we’re probably not going to wind up with,” said Senator John Rodgers of Glover during a telephone interview Tuesday.

One of the stated purposes of the bill was “to strengthen the role of planning commissions and local selectboard and planning commissions in the siting review process for energy facilities by giving greater weight to their recommendations and plans.”

Eolian Renewable Energy is proposing a 20-turbine project for Seneca Mountain that would be sited exclusively in the town of Ferdinand, a small, sprawling community and a member of the Unified Towns and Gores (UTG). Continue reading →

ISLAND POND — For two private developers who would like to start a nighttime rail passenger service between Montreal and Portland, slow is beautiful.

The working name for the project is train-hotel, and in a special meeting here Tuesday with Brighton Selectmen, Francois Rebello of Montreal and Richard Bennett of Biddeford, Maine, laid out a business proposal that would warm the heart of nearly everyone in a town that the railroad put on the map.

Essentially, the pair want to put evening passenger trains on three different routes, all linking Montreal to New York. Initially, the trains would run for three months, starting in the summer.

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John Rodgers and Tim de la Bruere do some last-minute campaigning in Newport on Election Day. Photo by Paul Lefebvre

copyright the Chronicle 11-7-12

In one of the closest local races of the night, incumbent Democrat Bobby Starr of North Troy and Democrat John Rodgers of Glover won the two seats in the sprawling Essex-Orleans Senate district.

The unofficial tally at the Chronicle was 8,210 for Mr. Starr, 7,360 for Mr. Rodgers, 7,234 for Representative Robert Lewis of Derby, and 4,077 for Jay Dudley of Barton.

That tally was based on results reported from 34 of the 35 towns in the district. The only town that did not report results Tuesday night in the Senate district was Victory, which had 66 voters on the checklist in 2008.

“A huge thank-you,” said Mr. Rodgers. He said he had a tremendous amount of help. The challenge was reaching the far corners of the district.

“I’d like to just thank the other candidates. It was a good clean race,” said Senator Starr. He said he also would like to thank the voters in the district.

Illuzzi loses bid for auditor

Senator Vince Illuzzi of Derby lost his first bid for a statewide office to Doug Hoffer of Burlington. Mr. Hoffer, who ran as a Democrat and Progressive, was elected state auditor by winning roughly 51 percent of the vote.

“That’s the way it goes,” said Mr. Illuzzi whose defeat Tuesday was the first time he has lost an election since he was elected to the Vermont Senate in 1980.

“I did the best I could, and that’s all I could do,” he said in a brief interview late Tuesday night.

Mr. Illuzzi also noted that it was a tough year for Republicans as statewide office seekers like Randy Brock for governor and Wendy Wilton for treasurer also lost.

Voters in Essex and Orleans counties bucked a statewide trend and heavily backed Republican candidates for state offices.

On the other hand, voters in the two counties overwhelmingly supported President Barack Obama, who carried every town except Maidstone.

Voter turnout was down compared to the last presidential election four years ago. This year 63 percent of the registered voters in the two counties came out to the polls as opposed to about 70 percent in 2008.

Incumbents re-elected in Orleans 2

A pair of Independents challenged the two Republican incumbents in the Orleans 2 House district, but the voters decided they liked things as they were. Representatives Mike Marcotte of Coventry and Duncan Kilmartin of Newport won handily over Newport Mayor Paul Monette and Newport Alderman Tim de la Bruere.